The Hollow Crown
by Little-Angry-Kitten
Summary: Her feet dangled from the side of the diving board. She could slip into the dark emerald waters and let the ocean swallow her whole. It would be so easy. She could just end this ridiculous farce that had become her life. It would only burn for a few minutes and then she'd experience complete darkness. So easy. So simple. Dramione Remix Round 10


**A/N: I'm so sad this is the last round of this amazing fest! I still remember the first time I took part and how much fun it had been! I think we owe a huge thank you to the amazing modes for running this for so long! My remix couple this year was Diana Princess of Wales and Dodi Al-Fayed. Dodi had been Diana's last relationship before she died. The pair had first met at a 1986 polo match in Windsor while Diana was still married to Prince Charles, although nothing came from the exchange. In the summer of 1997, Dodi invited Diana, William, and Harry to spend time on his yacht in the south of France. She later returned to the ship in August without her sons and a photo of the pair kissing made headlines around the world. The story was inspired by the famous picture of Diana in the blue swimsuit sitting at the edge of the diving board in Dodi's yacht. You'll also find many nods to Diana's struggle with suicide and mental health in general. **

**To my dearest friend and amazing beta, Nicia, I would be nothing without you and you know it!**

* * *

The hollow crown is a circlet denoting power, birthright, responsibility, legacy, and burden. It is also a small item of headwear that sits, more or less comfortably, on the head of a king. It is both multiple (each king showing their own preferences in their choice of headwear) and symbolically singular, able to be worn by only one person at a time. It is an object of adoration that brings rooms to a standstill, shaping the space in which it is received; it is also a piece of metal that clatters messily to the ground, rolls, and sinks. And it is, as in the above speech, a marker of death as well as of life.

~Peter Kirwan

* * *

There was nothing but the vast blue of the ocean before her eyes. A cruise in the South of France had sounded like a downright dream when it had been suggested, much needed time away from the mess at home. Ronald and his minions had to take the little peace she had found away too. She was not allowed to have anything good in her life.

She was still trying to wrap her head around the idea that her life with Ronald had ended. It wasn't that she had any feelings for him anymore. He made sure to kill those when she caught him shagging a blonde bimbo in their bed. But they had spent what felt like a lifetime together. It hurt to see twenty years of friendship being flushed down the drain. For months now she'd been trying to figure out what could have caused the decay in their relationship.

When had they started drifting apart?

Her thumb moved to the underside of her ring finger, searching for the wedding band that was no longer there. Hadn't been for a good six months, to be honest. She took it off the moment they signed the papers. Not because she wanted to get rid of the evidence of her marriage to Ronald. No, but because it hurt too much. The lies, the betrayal, the aching that draped like a shadow over their ten years together as a couple.

Hermione had been almost blind to their flaws when they had started dating. The wizarding world was just trying to rebuild itself. They were trying to live a normal life after what they had been through. She remembered being over the moon when he asked her out for the first time. Like every normal nineteen years old she had butterflies in her stomach. She couldn't keep a bite down from how nervous she was. That feeling would become a permanent fixture in her life in the coming years. Back then it was excitement, later it became dread of what new challenge Ronald would throw her way.

Her first clue that this would not work should have been the night he proposed to her. When she kissed him, tears of joy running down her eyes, and told him 'I love you' his blunt answer was 'whatever love means'. She had laughed back then, thinking it was funny. That wasn't the case right now when she had someone running damage control over what lies her ex-husband was feeding to the press. In retrospect, the fact that Molly was the only one excited with their wedding should have been her second clue. But Hermione was young and in love and thought Ronald would never do something to hurt her.

Her feet dangled from the side of the diving board. She could slip into the dark emerald waters and let the ocean swallow her whole. It would be so easy. She could just end this ridiculous farce that had become her life. It would only burn for a few minutes and then she'd experience complete darkness.

So easy.

So simple.

Her hand moved down to her still flat stomach. No. The times where death had seemed like the perfect escape were long gone. She was no longer that woman. Hermione had buried her the moment she took off her wedding ring. She pushed to her feet carefully and made her way back to the inside of the yacht.

The vacation was officially over.

* * *

Hermione Granger had no fond feelings towards Pansy Parkinson.

She was cold, distant and had been a downright nightmare to Hermione during their school years. But she was also the best personal relations professional the wizarding world had and Hermione needed all the help she could get. After she had asked for the divorce Ronald had become vicious towards her. Their marriage had been a rollercoaster at its best. Some days they were happy, some days she couldn't stand the man he turned into when he didn't get his way. Hermione had a very happy childhood, amidst all the drama in Hogwarts her family life had been close to perfect. Naturally, that was what she was expecting out of the person she chose to spend the rest of her life.

Her then-husband had a completely different idea of what a marriage should be like, though. Ronald thought that she would give up everything and take Molly's place in his life. He truly believed that she'd forgo her education and a normal job to stay home baking pies and popping out kids. She blamed herself for this last one, that was something she had always known about Ronald. She was foolish to think he'd change for her. To believe that he shared the same dream to make the world a better place.

After the war had ended and the celebrations had stopped she had thrown herself into charitable work. Harry had joined her along and they had succeeded in building a better place for their people. The more she delved into this cause though the more Ronald resent her. Her popularity was rising and his was diminishing. Years later Hermione realized that part of his dream was that she would melt into the background and just pretend to be the war hero's wife. Never mind that she was a heroine in her own right. Had she not been helping Harry he would have taken way longer to kill Voldemort. He might not even have succeeded in doing so.

Her finger ran over the thin pages of the Daily Prophet. Ronald looked like he was deep in thought as Rita Skeeter was asking him one question after another other. He sat by calmly and helped as the vile woman dissected their ten years together, tearing apart every good memory they had created.

She bunched the paper into her hand.

A moment later all that was left was ashes.

* * *

Her PR team had crammed into their suite's small living room. She was supposed to be on vacation and she felt anything but relaxed. Paris had always been a safe haven for her. She had come to the city of light many times throughout her adult years. No one cared about who she was here. No camera flashes were chasing after her. She was just another person lost in the crowd. The press had always been fascinated with her. More so than any other war hero and they had plenty to go around. But no matter what there was always someone chasing after her.

While she was shopping.

While she was out for lunch.

While she was on a vacation.

She was always at the end of a camera lens, being used as a pawn in someone else's game.

Ronald's interview came only as a reminder of how much she had been abused by them all these years. Her ex-husband had laid out all their life bare. Ronald had span quite the tale about how she was the reason their marriage broke down. He spoke about her struggle dealing with the aftermath of the war. How she couldn't sleep at night, how she struggled to keep any kind of food down. He even went as far as to blame her for the two miscarriages she had while they were married. He spoke about them like it had been something she wished and not a tragedy that left her with more scars than she could count.

"I think we should go after him," Pansy announced finally breaking the silence. "I think we should prepare a counter interview and expose all the vile and disgusting things he's done. All the lying, the cheating, we'll fight fire with fire." Hermione was fighting back tears as the other woman went on. She could not do this anymore. She could not keep fighting Ronald, and his mistresses and the press in every turn and corner. She just could not keep fighting a losing battle where everyone wanted something from her. This would never end. They would never leave her be. Not as long as she lived.

"Everybody out." His voice rang loud and clear in the small space. Their eyes met for a few seconds and she felt like he could look into her soul. She was still not used to the power this man had over her. How he could command her body. Not once had he tried to use it to manipulate her though. Not in the way Ronald had done for so many years. There were no games here. No hidden messages. Only the two of them.

"Draco-" Pansy tried to cut in. Hermione dropped his gaze and that was all he needed.

"I said, out." He growled lowly and finally everyone filtered out with Pansy being the last. Draco took two long strides and then he was in front of her. His hands cupped her face gently and he placed a soft kiss on her forehead. It was brief and tender and filled her insides with warmth. "What do you need?" He asked and she buried herself deep into his embrace.

* * *

"Anything you need, Granger." This had been his motto since the first time they met after the war. He had been gone from Britain for a good three years after they had won the last battle. Malfoy and his mother had switched sides at the last moment and that was what afford them the right to just up and leave. As soon as the Ministry had cleared them from any charges they had all but disappeared and Hermione could not blame them. Lucious had disgraced them in the worst way possible and was doomed to spend the rest of his life in Azkaban.

She had seen him again at a gala. Draco Malfoy had grown into a handsome man. Scrawny limps were filled with taught muscles and he had stopped wearing that horrible hair gel. The only thing she recognized from the little boy she went to school with was his grey eyes. Those had stayed the same if only haunted by the horrors they had witness. Oh, don't get her wrong, he was still an arse but not in a cruel way. Just full of himself. He had changed, all of them had.

A lunch date became dinner and then it became a weekend away. It was the first time in a long while that someone cared about what she had to say. Someone actually paid attention to Hermione Granger the human and not the war heroine. Malfoy wanted to talk about politics, history, philosophy. He engaged her in a level her ex-husband never could. When Ronald had announced that Lavender was expecting their first child Hermione had to getaway. From her old life, from the press that kept chasing her for a comment. Malfoy swooped in and suggested a cruise in the mediterranean sea. She agreed the second he had proposed it.

She had to get out of her golden cage.

The bars were not strong enough to keep her trapped any longer.

* * *

"I want out," she sighed deeply. "I want for the earth to open and swallow me whole so I can finally be free from all this torture."

"Alright," he pulled back and placed a soft kiss against her lips. Their eyes locked and Hermione knew that no matter what, the man before her would take care of her as no one had done before.

* * *

On 31 August 2009, Hermione Granger, famous war heroine and one part of the Golden Trio died in hospital as a result of injuries sustained in a car crash in the Pont de l'Alma road tunnel in Paris, France. It is said that Miss Granger was escorted by the infamous Lord Draco Malfoy and the muggle driver of their car. Both Lord Malfoy and the driver were pronounced dead at the scene.

* * *

August 30th, 2011

Somewhere in the South of France…

A warm breeze blew inside the room and wrapped around her like a blanket. The sun was just setting, painting the sky with all kind of pinks and purples. It almost made the place look like it was pulled out of a movie screen. Sometimes she felt like it too. Some nights she'd wake up gasping, thinking it was all a dream. Then she'd look to her left and see his lean body tangled in the white sheets. She would breathe a sigh of relief and then go back to sleep. Hermione hummed to herself as she pushed the diamond earring in place. They had been a gift from Draco their first night away from everything.

It had not been hard to stage the accident. Not with Draco's money and influence and a bit of conspiring with Harry. Draco meant it when he promised he would give her anything she wished for. What she desired most was to disappear, to live her life as a normal person. Pansy had brought Harry to her at Hermione's request shortly after Ronald's interview. She had explained everything to the man that had been her brother in everything but blood. She was expecting yelling and begging but he kissed her on both cheeks and wished her well. He had been her confidant through all of this after all.

It took them a few days after that to put everything together.

Pansy was the one that cleaned up everything in the magical aspect of their lives. She meticulously erased everything that could be used against them and moved all of Draco's assets somewhere they could be easily accessed.

Harry for his part made the arrangements for their disappearance.

While their friends worked in tandem to prepare for their 'departure' Hermione and Draco made everything they could to attract the press. Dinner at the best restaurants in Paris every night. Shopping in the most expensive shops. The paparazzi just ate it up, snapping one picture after the other. Before she knew it they were leaving the hotel for the last time as themselves. It would be the last time the cameras would chase after her like that. In a matter of minutes, they had reached the tunnel and had apparate at the crucial moment of the crash leaving back decoys of themselves. They had not looked back since then.

They spent the first few weeks in a villa in Tuscany waiting for the dust to settle. When that had passed they flew to Nice like normal muggles. It had been a fun day listening to Draco complain about how scared he was of planes and how a broom would have been better.

They had settled into a nice apartment that overlooked the Riviera. She spent her mornings drinking tea on their lovely patio and her evenings reading by the window overlooking the beach. A small part of her woke up terrified every morning waiting for the light of a flash that would catch her eyes. Every day that passed and she saw none Hermione felt more and more relaxed. A few months into their new life in France Draco popped the question. They got married with Pansy, Harry, and the moon as their witness.

Her hand went down to her rounding stomach as a soft kick landed on her side. She had not said a word to anyone when she first found out. She had lost the baby she'd been carrying when they first ran away. There was not much they could have done, her doctor had said. So with a haunting past like her own, she did not want to give false hope to her loving husband or their friends. But the weeks passed and the baby only grew stronger and Hermione finally had everything she had wished for. Draco had been over the moon when she had announced the news.

"Mon Coeur?" Draco's arms wrapped around her waist, his hands resting on top of hers on her stomach. "Pansy and Potter will be here at any moment. Are you ready?" She smiled and turned in his arms to face him. They were going out tonight. To celebrate their first year as a married couple and to toast on the fact that they were having a baby boy. Hermione planned to ask the two most trusted people she had in her life to become godparents to their first baby. She was expecting a blunt scowl from Pansy and a lot of crying from Harry. Draco had bought a camera specifically for that moment.

"I have been ready for you my entire life." She smiled and placed a soft kiss on his lips. "Thank you." She whispered lowly and felt her eyes well up with tears. This time though, they were happy ones. "Thank you for bursting into my life and changing it." A kiss to his right cheek. "Thank you for doing what no one bothered to do before for me." A kiss to his left one. "Thank you for showing me that there are things worth living for." It was his turn to kiss her this time, a deep passionate kiss that left her panting.

"Oi!" Harry's deep voice broke their little bubble. "Keep it in your bedroom! There are innocent eyes here."

"You wouldn't know innocent even if it bit you in the arse, Potter." Pansy's snide comment came a moment later as she stepped around him. There was no malice behind it though. If anything it sounded… teasing. Hermione had noticed that the duo seemed to be found together more and more often lately. "I'm hungry, can we go?" Harry whined and Pansy elbowed him in retaliation.

Draco rolled his eyes at their friends and pulled her with him as they moved towards the door.

Finally, they were free…

* * *

**A/N:In Diana's biography written by Andrew Morton, there are several mentions to Charles' disdain towards Diana's popularity. She mentions several times how he made snide comments about how the press and the people only wanted to see and speak to Diana. The quote in the story 'whatever love means' is something Charles said to Diana the night they got engaged and later on in the first interview they gave as an engaged couple. In the biography, it's also mentioned how Diana struggled with her mental health and how Charles just kept brushing it off and blaming her for their failed marriage instead of being there for her. The biography Diana: Her True Story In Her Own Words by Andrew Morton and the documentary Diana: In Her Own Word by National Geographic are two amazing works if you're interested in learning more about one of the most prominent figures in modern history.**


End file.
